It feels like summer has finally arrived.

Anne and I made it safely back to Shorewood from BRAW yesterday afternoon, and I was just too lazy to write a “Happy Summer Solstice” post then, but the good news is that I did venture back into Estabrook Park this morning, and look who I found waiting for me at the pond.

When I first spotted this beauty, I figured it was one of the green herons we’ve seen there on and off this spring, but it was less of a fraidy-cat then the green herons have been lately, so I took a closer look. If my identification proves to be correct, this is an immature yellow-crowned night heron, which we have seen at the pond before, but who is considered a rarity for here and now. Once again, wordpress is throttling the image resolution, so if you like to enjoy the details, this is an image worth clicking on.

There was also one wood duck hen at the pond, and here she is checking to see what I might have left for her to eat after she watched me scour the west lawn for discarded fishing tackle and food packaging.

I checked on our ruby-throated hummingbird, of course, and look who I found in the nest instead! Yup, those are the beaks of two hummingbird chicks, and you can even see some of the head feathers at the end of the one on the left, especially if you click on the image so you can zoom in. I never did see Mom, even after a second visit, but on a warm day like today, I suspect the chicks are fine on their own, and she was probably busy collecting nourishment for them and herself. She may also be keeping her distance, now that the need to incubate is over, when someone else is near.

The goslings are almost all starting to get their adult plumage, and I haven’t seen a single wood duck duckling yet, but there are still young mallard ducklings on the river, and here are four of them.

The warm weather has brought with it a veritable explosion of bug life, and I finally spotted my first mourning cloak of the year, but this silver-spotted skipper, also a first for the year, picked a prettier background, which made a much nicer picture.

Finally, the dragonflies are plentiful, and here’s a magnificent common green darner perched on the remains of last year’s weeds along the west side of the soccer fields. This one is also worth a click.

Lastly, as we were packing up our gear yesterday morning for the drive home from Perrot State Park in Trempealeau, this butterfly landed on my shoe and literally dared me to dig out my phone to take its picture. It’s a hackberry emperor, which we have seen before in Estabrook, but only once so far.

As I watched Anne drive up with the rental van we were about to load our bikes into, look who I spotted plodding across the parking lot. I first assumed it was a painted turtle, like the ones we often see in the Estabrook pond, but the yellow striping on its face was swirlier and a paler yellow, and that’s because it is a northern map turtle, which I’ve also only ever seen once before in Estabrook.

I gave it a lift across the parking lot, and here’s a closeup of that pretty face.

I see the weather is forecast to be even warmer tomorrow morning and just as windy, so I wonder who I will find next.